"Knitting is like being able to do magic" - I read this saying on a postcard somewhere. It popped into my head again the other day, because there really is some truth to it: if you can knit, you have the wonderful ability to create something entirely according to your own wishes. Something unique that can't be found anywhere else. With a bit of wool and two needles as magic wands, we can make our dreams of our favourite item of clothing come true and cater precisely to our individual needs and preferences.
My two-year-old son has very clear preferences. Like many other little boys, he loves tractors. That's nothing unusual at first. His favourite colours, on the other hand, don't correspond at all to what the fashion industry still often has in store for "typical boys". He hardly pays any attention to clothes in blue, green, brown or yellow, instead he likes to experiment with his big sister's skirts, dresses and jumpers. They both seem to agree that pink, purple, berry and red colours are the prettiest. And why not: colours are for everyone!
I see what my son likes and I really want to give him the feeling that he's golden. And so I support him in being able to freely develop his own style according to his taste. There is just one challenge sometimes: reconciling his preferences. Because although the topic of diversity and gender equality is on everyone's lips these days, there is still an unmistakable gender categorisation in most children's departments. Pink vs. light blue, princess vs. digger. There's often not much in between. And a tractor jumper in purple or pink? Certainly not!
Luckily, mum can do magic. And so I had the idea of knitting my son a jumper for his birthday that was tailored to him and his preferences. I found free instructions for a great trecker jumper on Ravelry - unfortunately it's only available in Norwegian. Even though I don't speak the language at all, I was able to follow the instructions quite well thanks to my knitting experience, a strong will and the help of Google Translate.
The colour choice was more difficult. There are so many great shades of purple, berry and red that I could see the tractor jumper in several matching colours in my mind's eye. In the end, my decision was much more moderate than I had planned. Maybe I wasn't brave enough to knit a pink jumper with purple tractors after all - or maybe my own rather plain taste guided me too much when buying wool. Either way, I knitted my son a cream-coloured jumper (118 cream) with red tractors (135 copper beech) with dark purple tyres (134 amethyst) happily do their rounds and blow ecologically harmless exhaust fumes (117 tea) into the air.
I think it turned out really nicely - and my son likes it and it looks great. That's the main thing. Nevertheless, I'm surprised myself that it turned out so discreet. Although I want to set an example for my two children that they don't have to be influenced by rigid and outdated norms, I can't seem to free myself completely from the beliefs that have also shaped me. An exciting realisation! But change starts in the mind, and what I knit for my children has to please them - no one else.
Let's enchant our world with our knitting skills - and make it an open, tolerant and free place where the individual person is important, with everything that makes them who they are.
